Where have all the car radios gone?

[boater sam]

I have a friend who drives a tractor, not all the time, he has a Kia as well, who would like a radio in it. He cut hedges with a monster old 8000 Ford beast.

Easy? 

You would think so but I have searched to discover that the conventional slot in a hole car radio with FM and hopefully DAB too have disappeared.

Its all "headunits" whatever they are or dedicated to a particular car dashboard things like juke boxes with dials and buttons all over.

Bluetooth and USB etc totally pointless, anything connected to a dedicated socket in a car out of the question. Some thing that needs just 12v, aerial and a speaker would be ideal.

Any help forthcoming?

[Mark Hennessy]

The traditional DIN E headunit is still around. There's several available from Halfords, for example:

https://www.halfords.com/technology/car-...r-stereos/

I'd guess you'd need to ignore the double-DIN units. From a quick glance, it appears the CD mechanism is an endangered species, and not all have DAB. If both of those were needed, I'd probably pick the Sony unit:

https://www.halfords.com/technology/car-...15430.html

Seems OK for the money. I've had several Sony units in the past, and was happy with all of them. I don't have experience of their more recent offerings though. They OEM for some car manufacturers.

Of course, there's always second-hand. Looking at sold auctions for Sony head units, there's loads that went for just a few 10s of pounds.

[Murphyv310]

Hi.
Yes, I agree with Mark. My local autoshop has a really good choice and far cheaper than halfords. My Panda's set that does everything is still single Din with a big facia, made by Continental in the Czech Republic who are a German tyre company.
Sony were good, not sure now though but look at Pioneer sets, no CD but Bluetooth, USB card or TF card.

[boater sam]

Thanks, but far too complicated for a tractor, doesn't want bluetooth or usb.

What is a head unit? Does this imply that its not a complete radio but just the control panel?  I'm too old for all this jargon.

Even stereo is not required. Certainly not cassette in an agricultural vehicle.  Even CD would be worth considering.

Is there not a simple radio anymore?  A bit or mono FM?

 I would buy him an old one but there is nothing on Medium or Long waves really worth listening to.

[boater sam]

Hi.
Yes, I agree with Mark. My local autoshop has a really good choice and far cheaper than halfords. My Panda's set that does everything is still single Din with a big facia, made by Continental in the Czech Republic who are a German tyre company.
Sony were good, not sure now though but look at Pioneer sets, no CD but Bluetooth, USB card or TF card.

Single Din?  TF card?  USB Card? Didn't know there was such a thing, memory stick yes but card? 
Is it me or has the world gone mad whilst I was sleeping?

[Murphyv310]

Ha Ha Sam.
A head unit is simply what is fitted to the dash. It usually contains the radio and what can be used for your own choice. The options are Bluetooth, USB socket for a stick (often in the glove box or under a flap) TF card is another designation for a memory card. Most sets are canbus connected for sat nav steering wheel controls etc. CD is outdated and takes up room in the car, a stick holds thousands of songs and they don't get scratched. CD in a tractor is not a good idea, the sets get mucky and fail.

[Murphyv310]

Just get a basic set. It'll be FM and you don't need to use a stick if you don't want to.

Here's a cheap set https://www.amazon.co.uk/Version-Andven-...a?dchild=1&keywords=car+radio&qid=1598040037&sprefix=Car+radio&sr=8-28-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExMFRJMjY0UTBKVzNLJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNjExNzYyMzI2NEdUNkVTRjE0TiZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwODg3MzA3MVhHRzdEUkE5UzVFJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfcGhvbmVfc2VhcmNoX2J0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

[boater sam]

Not much canbus on a 30 year old tractor! He doesn't need sat nav, a field is a field! Can you imagine canbus on a tractor steering wheel? Would it last a week?
He flails hedges, this beast has double wheels on one side and the arm and hydraulic flail on the other, 8 litre 6 cylinder engine.

[Mark Hennessy]

I haven't seen an AM-only car radio for sale since the early '80s. Almost anything you find second-hand - ignoring obviously vintage stuff - will do FM, and should be pretty cheap. The vintage stuff might cost more because people want the authentic radio for their classic cars.

Don't be confused by the term "head unit". I can see how there is an implication that there might be more behind it, but that's usually not the case - almost everything you can buy will be self-contained, complete with amplifiers, etc. Just connect to the power supply, aerial, and whatever speakers you have - job done!

Some of them have phono sockets on the rear, implying that they need to be combined with separate amplifiers. Usually, there will be internal amplifiers; the phono sockets are just there for those who choose to use more powerful amplification - in which case they can be safely ignored. But it's a 2 minute job to check the spec, of course.

For many years now, they have contained 4 channels of amplification - 2 speakers in the front, 2 in the rear. That doesn't mean you have to use all 4 - you could just use one if that's all you can accommodate in the tractor. Just make sure the unused leads are well-insulated, as they sit at half the supply voltage*, and the output amplifiers will likely be damaged by accidental shorts...

*: Because they are usually bridged. If so, each amplifier will be quite powerful - perhaps around 16 real watts into 4 ohms. With decent speakers, there will be plenty of volume to overcome the worst of the engine noise.

The old radios - the ones with two knobs on either side - were called "DIN D". They were superseded during the late '70s/early '80s by what you see today - slightly larger, and a simple rectangle leaving the manufacturer to decide where knobs, etc, could go. These are called "DIN E". The Sony set that I linked to is an example of that form factor. Subsequently, they came out with "Double DIN" - that's what the larger radios that you'll see on my first link are. There's a few words about all this here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_7736

Just because a modern radio comes with Bluetooth, USB slots, and perhaps slots for memory cards (like you have in your digital camera), that doesn't mean you have to use them, and there's no reason why they should be a problem. Just ignore them. A car radio is still a car radio! But if you think that will confuse the person using it, just pick up something s/h that pre-dates all these modern features. A radio/cassette or radio/CD player from the 1990s might well be a good bet, and won't cost much. But you mentioned DAB - something that is modern enough to have DAB might well have some of these other facilities. As I say, just ignore them.

It's a shame you're asking now. I had 3 sets that I could have given you. Two nice Sony units were given away, and the other (a decent Pioneer) went to the scrap yard with the car - it wasn't worth pulling it out. Frankly, depending on what's local to you, a visit to a scrapyard might be the quickest and easiest thing to do...

Or perhaps something like this might be better: https://www.screwfix.com/p/stanley-sy360...-snr/54182

Given how noisy the tractor almost certainly is, adding a loud car radio to the mix wouldn't be my first choice - and as it's a workplace, the HSE might well have a view on this. These will knock quite a bit of that noise down, and he'll be able to hear the radio more clearly without damaging his hearing any more than it might already be. Those were just the first result I found - many other options exist.

[Amie]

I have a friend who drives a tractor....who would like a radio in it. He cut hedges with a monster old 8000 Ford beast.

Bluetooth and USB etc totally pointless, anything connected to a dedicated socket in a car out of the question. Some thing that needs just 12v, aerial and a speaker would be ideal.

Any help forthcoming?

Something a bit vintage maybe Sam?

I've a Japanese made Pye, (or is it Ekco?) Back at the Swaffham branch M, L, & VHF 88-104.

Just needs 12volts, aerial, speakers. I was given it, and it sits there not being used. No dab or cassette obviously....

Amie.